PrepTest 143, Section 3, Question 21
Maté is a beverage found in much of(42 more words not shown)
Which one of the following,(7 more words not shown)
- AIt is rare(28 more words not shown)
- BMany Paraguayans believe(20 more words not shown)
- CMany Paraguayans believe(8 more words not shown)
- DThere are few(10 more words not shown)
- ETypically, the longer(18 more words not shown)
Reading the argument
A drink can become popular somewhere other than its birthplace.
Imagine a country importing a beverage, embracing it, and developing lots of local versions. It might eventually offer more varieties and use it more widely than the place that invented it. So Paraguay's enthusiasm for maté doesn't, by itself, establish that maté originated there.
What we’re looking for
The author gives us two clues: Paraguay has the most varieties, and maté is used most widely there. To strengthen the conclusion, I'd want a connection between one of those features and the place of origin. Does a greater variety, or wider use, give us reason to think a place was first? Let's look for that missing link.
Working the answers
- A
This connects a great variety with a long history, but the evidence only says Paraguay has more varieties than other places. Those aren't the same. Imagine three varieties in Paraguay and one elsewhere: Paraguay has more without necessarily having a great variety.
Even if maté has been used in Paraguay for a very long time, it could have been used somewhere else for longer. A doesn't provide the comparative relationship that would make Paraguay stand out as the likely starting place.
- B
People moving into Paraguay when maté became popular there doesn't identify its birthplace. They might even have brought the drink with them. And this is a report about what many people believe about its popularity, not evidence that Paraguay invented it.
- C
Best isn't first. Paraguayans could produce excellent maté using a drink that originated elsewhere. Their opinion of its quality doesn't connect the country's present enthusiasm to the drink's origin.
- D
Where a drink is regularly consumed now doesn't settle where it started. A drink could lose popularity in its original home and remain popular somewhere else. D also doesn't distinguish Paraguay from the other South American places mentioned in the passage.
- ECorrect
This takes a less direct route than my prediction. It connects how widely a drink is used with how long it has been used in a place. The longer history typically goes with wider use.
Now combine that relationship with the fact that maté is used most widely in Paraguay. Its especially wide use gives us a reason to suspect an especially long history there. The place where the drink originated would have the earliest start, so this makes Paraguay a more plausible candidate.
This isn't proof that the widest use must mean the earliest origin. Other influences could affect popularity. But the conclusion only says Paraguay is likely the origin, and E gives the current-use evidence a connection to elapsed time that it previously lacked. That is meaningful support.
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